After seeing action in just 16 games between the 2018 and 2020 seasons, the current ace on the Profs pitching staff, senior Emily August, has come a long way to earn her stripes. 

In 26 appearances, and over 100 innings pitched in 2021, she finished the season with a 0.74 earned runs average (ERA), 14 wins and only three losses. 

August is picking up right where she left off last season, as this year she has made 13 appearances and has a 6-3 record so far. Her most recent win has come off a double header against Rosemont College earlier in the week. 

Head Coach Kim Wilson expects August to be right on pace where she was last year. 

“Overall, we’re expecting her to continue where she ended last season,” Coach Wilson said.

August has delivered on the mound and, in the sweep on Tuesday, August dominated on the rubber. She struck out a career-high 13 batters, while only allowing two hits, and the bases did not see any traffic past the fourth inning. 

Coach Wilson is proud of how August has stepped up last season and early on this season. 

“She did a great job,” Coach Wilson said. “All those things we asked of her were exactly what she needed to do for us to be successful and her to be successful. So she’s a worker, that’s the biggest part of her.”

August’s teammates are contributing on the offensive end and were a huge factor in the win. Rowan scored nine runs, which included a solid performance from sophomore Cat Thomas, who was 2-4 with a two-run shot. Fellow sophomores Grace Shukaitis and Breanna Bryant, along with freshman Devyn DiPasquale each added a pair of hits in the win. 

McKenzie Melvin, a freshman, stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded, and emptied them as a ball was misplaced in the outfield, which broke open the game. The profs won 9-0 and dominated on both sides of the field in the first game of the day.

In game two, freshman Rylee Lutz got the start in the circle and Thomas came in on relief before the Profs handed the ball over to August to close out the game. 

The Profs have 18 underclassmen on the squad this season, seven of which are freshmen. The freshmen have stepped up this season, easing some pressure off of August on the mound. 

Head Coach Kim Wilson understands that she can rely on other pitchers to perform well, relieving some of the tension off of the ace, when other pitchers can step up and perform at a high level. 

“Going into this season, we don’t have to put all the weight of the world on her back,” August said. “She’s being a good mentor.” 

Lutz pitched two-thirds of an inning, and although she gave up six runs, none of them were earned. Thomas came in to relieve Lutz where she also pitched two-thirds of an inning where she gave up two earned runs and struck out one. 

The Profs answered with four runs of their own after being down 6-0 at the top of the first inning, keeping the Profs within striking distance. After the Ravens tacked on two more runs, August entered the game to shut things down.

The bats of Rowan started to show, as underclassmen Thomas, Melvin and Kaitlyn Riggs also contributed with three hits. Sophomore Payton MacNair and senior Morgan Zane each added two hits, while Thomas led the team with three RBIs

On the hill, August closed out the game, going five and two-thirds innings, striking out eight, allowing two hits and giving up an earned run.

The Profs battled back and by the end of the night, they took both games from Rosemont, 9-0 and 13-9. 

August believes the Profs are in a strong place this season, and the future is looking bright with the young talent on the squad.

“I’m confident with the girls we have now, we have a young team,” August said. “I think they have a lot of talent and I think we’re going to do very well this season. I’m very excited to get to play with all of them and get back out on the field.” 

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